We have been promised Level 4 self-driving systems by Elon Musk for the past 10 years. Every year Musk says it will happen “next year” but like election promises it is just a lot of talk without a single ounce of groundwork. At GTC, NVIDIA announced the NVIDIA DRIVE Hyperion Level 4 self-driving platform to be used by BYD, Geely, and Nissan.
The NVIDIA DRIVE Hyperion platform provides a standard reference architecture that includes computing, sensors, networking, and safety systems to accelerate the development of self-driving vehicles.
Level 4 self-driving is a system that does not require human intervention to drive or take over in emergency situations. It is however limited to certain areas and weather conditions using a geofencing system that distinguishes it from Level 5.
It was also announced that Uber will use NVIDIA DRIVE Hyperion along with NVIDIA DRIVE AV self-driving software in their robotaxis in 28 cities on four continents by 2028. Uber robotaxis will operate in Los Angeles and the San Francisco Bay Area by H1 2027.
Meanwhile, Grab, Bolt, Grab, Lyft and TIER IV are also using Hyperion to accelerate the development of their robotaxis. Grab has invested in Momenta, Infermove and Momenta since last year to offer robotaxis services in Southeast Asia starting this year.
